Racial Justice After SFFA V. Harvard

October 25, 2024
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Thorne Auditorium
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Northwestern University Law Review is thrilled to announce its fall symposium, Racial Justice After SFFA v. Harvard.

In June of 2023, the Supreme Court decided Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. Harvard. The Court’s ruling declared the race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard and the University of North Carolina (UNC) unconstitutional. This decision marked a seismic shift in equal protection law, dismantling a practice that had existed for almost half a century. Northwestern University Law Review’s 2024 Symposium addresses the impact and ramifications of this historic ruling. 

The Racial Justice After SFFA v. Harvard Symposium consists of four panels followed by a keynote address from NAACP Legal Defense Fund President Janai Nelson. The first panel examines the cases that SFFA brought against Harvard and UNC, tracing the roles of student activists and civil rights coalitions in defending affirmative action and assessing the divergent Supreme Court opinions that sharply disagreed on the historical, current, and future aspects of racial equality in the United States. 

The second panel assesses the ramifications of SFFA v. Harvard, examining its impact on the interpretation of Titles VI and VII, challenges to disparate impact liability, restrictions on efforts to promote diversity in K–12 schools, and more. 

The third panel explores the social history, legal decisions, structural factors, and movement strategies that led the Court to invalidate these affirmative action programs—including paths not taken that might have resulted in a different outcome. 

The fourth and final panel investigates strategies to enhance representation, promote equitable redistribution of resources, and reform institutions to advance a multiracial democracy. Janai Nelson will deliver a keynote after this panel, applying her extensive experience and expertise to the issues discussed in this Symposium. In bringing scholars, activists, and practitioners together, this Symposium opens up impactful discussion about one of the most significant racial justice decisions of our time. 

Continuing Legal Education Information:

This program is approved for 5 general CLE credit hours in the state of Illinois. Attendees must fill out and return the paper attendance log provided at the program by November 7, 2024. Late requests for credit will not be accommodated. With questions, please contact external-partnerships@law.northwestern.edu.

Symposium Schedule

Friday, October 25

(All times are Central Daylight Time.)

9:00–9:10 Introductions

Dheven Unni, Northwestern University Law Review Editor-in-Chief

9:10–10:20 Panel I: The SFFA Cases

Panelists: Dr. OiYan Poon, NAACP LDF Thurgood Marshall Institute; Mr. David Hinojosa, U.S. Department of Justice; Professor Russell Robinson, UC Berkeley School of Law

Moderator: Professor Sheldon Bernard Lyke, Loyola University Chicago School of Law

10:20–10:30

Break

10:30–11:50 Panel II: SFFA’s Aftermath

Panelists: Professor Sarah Medina Camiscoli, Rutgers Law School; Professor Janel George, Georgetown University Law Center; Professor Cara McClellan, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School; Ms. Kristin Penner, African American Policy Forum & Coalition for a Diverse Harvard

Moderator: Professor Yuvraj Joshi, Brooklyn Law School

11:50–12:20

Lunch Break

12:20–1:30 Panel III: The Path to SFFA

Panelists: Professor Kimberly West-Faulcon, Loyola Law School; Professor Jamelia Morgan, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law; Professor Jeremiah Chin, University of Washington School of Law

Moderator: Professor Paul Gowder, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

1:30–1:40

Break

1:40–2:50 Panel IV: Racial Justice Horizons After SFFA

Panelists: Professor Yuvraj Joshi, Brooklyn Law School; Professor Sheldon Bernard Lyke, Loyola University Chicago School of Law; Professor Erika Wilson, University of North Carolina School of Law

Moderator: Professor Jamelia Morgan, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

2:50–3:00

Break

3:00–3:55 Keynote Address & Moderated Discussion

Ms. Janai Nelson, President of NAACP Legal Defense Fund

*This session does not qualify for CLE credit under Illinois’s MCLE requirements.

3:55–4:00 Closing Remarks

Areeb Asif, Northwestern University Law Review Senior Symposium Editor

 4:00–5:00 Reception

Thorne Lobby